But while the industry is generally bullish towards such technologies, widescale adoption is still some way off.

In a survey by expert administrative services provider Intertrust, almost two thirds (65%) of senior financial services industry executives agreed that AI, blockchain and robotics will have a positive impact on their business in the future, yet only a third (33%) have started deploying them.

For the study, Intertrust interviewed over 500 executives covering the asset management, corporate, capital markets and private wealth sectors based in Europe, North America, the Middle East and Asia.

Capital markets-focused organisations such as investment banks are the furthest ahead, with over half (51%) saying that new disruptive technologies are already being adopted compared to just 17% among those in the private wealth industry.

Intertrust found that, rather than accelerating towards a technology-driven future, the industry is taking a more measured approach; 65% of respondents believe disruptive technology will deliver the most value by driving back-end operational efficiencies, particularly in areas such as Know Your Customer (KYC) reporting, due diligence and compliance.

Stephanie Miller, chief executive of Intertrust, commented: “With the hype surrounding disruptive technology in the financial sector it is easy to lose sight of reality. The findings from this study suggest that while the industry is positive towards new technology such as AI, blockchain and robotics only a minority of firms are currently putting it to use and the speed of travel remains cautious.

“At present, new technologies are seen to add most value to back-office operations and the threat they pose to existing business models is seen as very low. However, the industry cannot afford to be too complacent as the pace of adoption is likely to accelerate dramatically in the coming years. Once this happens, we will be able to spot the clear winners that have found new ways to apply disruptive technology and as a result stolen a march on the competition.”

Within Osborne Clarke’s recently launched Next-Generation Connectivity report, 91.7% of respondents from the financial services industry indicated that connectivity is important to the running of their business. Furthermore, similar to that of Intertrust, the Osborne Clarke report found that 67% of respondents saw augmented, virtual and mixed reality as an opportunity to their business in the next five years, with only 4.6% perceiving the technology to be a risk to their business.